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Sen. Ted Stevens was killed in a small plane crash in his home state of Alaska, according to Mitch Rose, spokesman for the Stevens family and former chief of staff for Stevens for nine years, as reported by Dave Forman of our Washington Bureau news desk. He confirmed that the family was just notified that Stevens was killed in the plane crash.
Stevens, 86, was the longest-serving Republican senator and Alaska's longest-serving senator. Stevens was convicted on corruption charges just a week before he came up for re-election in 2008. He lost by less than 4,000 votes to Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich (D). Six months later, his conviction was overturned by the Justice Department, citing prosecutorial misconduct.
In 1978, Stevens, a former WWII pilot, survived a plane crash that killed his wife. In 1972, Begich's father, Nick Begich, and former House Majority Leader Hale Boggs were also killed in an Alaska plane crash.
Because of the state's size -- 16% of the entire land area of the United State with just 0.22% of the population -- air travel in Alaska is common. A 2002 AP article recounts Stevens' uneasiness with it.
"Every time you go up," Stevens said, per the 2002 article, "there's a chance you won't come down."
For more background on Stevens, see our earlier post.
Leave a Comment:
Godspeed Senator Stevens...
Thoughts and prayers go out to family & friends!
Amen, Feisty, amen.
Rest in peace Senator Stevens.
My prayers are with the family.
I'm very sorry to hear of Sen. Ted Stevens demise in a small plane crash. Condolences to his family.
Some people have the worst luck. It's very uncommon to be involved in a plane crash, let alone survive one. He barely survived one only to be killed in another. Amazing.
Thoughts and prayers to the family. How very unfortunate.
A prayer goes out to all those families who lost loved ones in this crash.
RIP Senator Stevens. Thanks for your years of service to this country and thoughts and prayers to his family and friends. :-(
So sorry to hear this news.
Thoughts and prayers to family and friends.
Although I didn't agree with Sen. Stevens on most issues I do feel sorry for his family and send condolences. Tragedies like this are terrible no matter who suffers from them (exception maybe Bin Laden)
Just got in and heard this news. My sympathies to Sen. Stevens family and all the other families that lost Loved ones. Thoughts and prayers this evening for their Peace and recovery for the injured from the Hill
Time wounds all heals. Congressman Rangle should take note.
No one should be expressing joy or happiness around something like this. Let's hope we never find ourselves or loved ones in a similar situation.
we will all one day find ourselves or our loved ones in this situation, We are mortal. For Ted it wasn't even an untimely death. The man advocated and voted for policies that killed people all around the world, even women and children. God has called him home, for his day of reckoning. What could be more natural?
I deleted Paul's post as I began reading through comments on this post. I appreciate you all policing yourselves, and we won't catch all posts of that nature, but just try to be adults who you would want your children to model.
Domenico Montanaro
Now think again about what you just did.
Censorship of free speech which wasn't even offensive by definition.
On the thread about Obama going to Texas you had any number of posters speculating on assassination possibilities and you didn't bat an eye.
On another subject which you have constantly ignored, when are you going to stop yourselves from referring to the Rule22 revision of the filibuster as the same thing as a filibuster? You know as a student of politics that they are not the same thing yet you willfully lead the public astray by calling the fake filibuster, the Proceedural FINO, the same thing as a true filibuster. This is wrong and the same dereliction of duty by the MSM as we had in the lead up to the Iraq war. Please stop telling the public falsehoods.
Domenico,
As I didn't see what Paul posted to warrant you taking it down... I suggest that you also remove TomT-2013130 post under First Thoughts proclaiming that 'Obama' should have been on the plane that went down in Alaska!
One of the most distasteful posts I've ever seen here @ FR and you should know by now my tolerance level is pretty high!
Feisty
I wrote, Let's hope the Cheney family flys out to Alaska for the funeral.
Paul,
Dude it doesn't take all of that BS. Just hope your family is not killed in a plane crash then we will see how you feel.
I don't have to worry about that, my family not being killed in a plane crash.
If I were stupid like you , I might have to worry about my family dying in a plane crash.
No one in my family is stupid enough to all be on the same plane at one time, dunce.
Domenico: Given what has been posted on First Read lately, I think Paul's post is the wrong place to draw the line. The right wing has been posting some really egregious and racist stuff on First Read, I do think the outrage should be there. WE can police ourselves on the left and are happy to do so. What parameters are there for dealing with the trolls on the right that are polluting this board with some horrible things? No one minds a discussion on the issues. I don't have a problem those on the right that want to have a thoughtful discussion. If you start watching the blogs on First Read about 4 in the afternoon on through the evening, you will see what I mean. Paul's post was completely innocuous compared to a lot of those. On another matter: why post comments at all on deaths? I think it is just bad practice, and maybe a discussion we could have. Love, newdayDAWNING10
Thanks newdayDawning.
I may be guilty of more than what I relayed to Feisty. The discussion went beyond the plane ride out to the funeral. Domenico appears to have deleted a series of exchanges after the innocuous one.
None of it warranted deletion and I think it should be reinstated.
I think the point is still valid. I was out all day, so I can't know what you posted. But, I do think that there have been some posts that just surprise me recently, and make me wonder why this isn't visited more by the First Read Staff. Having a discussion is one thing, but some of the stuff on here makes me wonder if I want to continue to read it. The other point I make is also valid. It is just too much of a temptation to get say things about public people when they pass. I think in general, it is bad practice to open discussion about it. I always try to think of people's families, and no matter what we think of them or their policy positions, they are still loved by someone. I was bothered by it when Senator Kennedy passed, and I have promised myself not to engage in the behavior. Everyone is loved by someone, and I guess I want us all to remember that.
Agreed Newday & Paul:
I see the post from Tom is still up where he's fantasizing about President Obama having been on that plane!
Either 'police' this blog 'evenly' or just say what the hell and allow a free for all... Judging from some of the stuff I've seen lately... my bet is the latter! :0(
And there is someone at the end of the thread of First Thoughts thanking us for all the hard work we do keeping this a great blog - however, they've had enough of some of the vitriol that's passing for discourse these days!
Very sad that people are leaving due to the right wing antics!
You said it better than I did, Feisty, thanks.
All of you liberals have the audacity to talk about conservative attacks. You have some of the worst offenders. This is a blog not a courtroom. If you cant take the heat, then keep it moving.
Everyone doesn't like everyone and ideologies do clash. You believe what you want and I'll believe what I want.
I hate to agree with IntheMiddle, but I have seen some nasty stuff from both sides.
How far we have come, how much farther we have to go. Sen Stevens is gone as will all of us one day. He will be judged for his good and as well for his bad in another court higher than ours. I believe everything is on the wheel. What goes around comes around and the man/women is watching.
My prayers and best wishes go out to his family and I wish them well.
So Domenico, is shutting down free speech an American activity you would want your kids to model?
Paul-977599, I understand your comment, but read literally what you just wrote. If in your post, you would have dropped 30 F bombs, a couple of SOB's and a few donkey butts, is that still not "free speech"?Â
You generically repeat the term 'free speech' but then justify it under not being offensive. But again, even if it is offensive, does that somehow make it not free?
You have no more 'right' to come into my house and say what you please and how you please...I am not forced to allow that in my home because it is 'free speech'.
This site may be 'opened' to the public, but it is not 'owned' by it. Just like I have rules in my house as I am sure you have rules in your own home...if you want something from me, you deal with my rules. I'm willing to bet you live no differently.
Except Allen, if you read some of the other articles posted and the responses, you will find far more egregious comments posted. If you are going to have rules in your house, I would imagine that you would plan to hold all to that standard. I expect that on First Read too. I don't think comments should be allowed on peoples' deaths at all. A person who has served in office can elicit strong feelings both pro and con. If First Read is going to set standards, maybe that is the first standard that they set. However, once they open that barn door, and forget to close the gate to the pasture, the horse (as my husband learned this weekend) is going to go for a walk. Since they posted this, they have to expect both negative and positive comments. Which gets me back to...don't open comments on peoples deaths.
Tom wrote, "The only way this country snaps back is if Obama would have bee on that (Stevens') plane."
That is someone wishing for a sitting President's death, as the only "solution" to our problems.
Even though Tom's thought and speech is offensive and illogical, he should have a right to say it, have it be heard, and suffer the response he deserves from other postings.
That is largely the point of a cyberforum like this; we're never going to accomplish anything other than exchanging of opinions and occasionally changing a few minds.
Tom, how would Obama's death stop Biden from carrying on his policies?
Allen, if you invite me into your "house", I can say whatever I want. I may not get to stay, but you don't get to erase what I said either. It's a bad anaology anyway, it doesn't apply.
This is a public space for public discussion, it's sole purpose is the exchange of ideas. There should be no children here running around under foot. What Domenico did was much more offensive to this setting than anything I wrote. Tom's deathwish on Obama remains posted, my thoughts should be reinstated.
Dawn
He left the stall and the barn door open? I bet your horses are smart enough to work the latch if they really think there is something to be gained from leaving their stalls.
Is your husband going to be alright?
It was kind of funny. It was my mare that decided to take a morning constitutional and she NEVER leaves the yard. The others were in the far pasture. So, honestly it really wasn't his fault. But, it was a lovely morning, and since I had not been out on her, she decided to take herself for a walk. I saw her go by the window, so went after her running down the road, hubby joined me with grain bucket and halter. Summer was enjoying taking her people for a jog, and I was just thinking I was going to have to go back and get another horse, when she abruptly stopped, and ducked her head for the halter. What did we learn? We are in pretty good shape, it was quite a jog. Summer Surprise is well named, and (as I have always told my husband) if you give a horse an opportunity to get into trouble, they'll take you up on it everytime!
My two bits - Making comments about wishing people dead is disgusting and deplorable; however, I don't think Paul's comment should have been deleted because it is not possible for the FR crew to police these comments consistently. Trying to say either the liberals or the righties are worse than the other is bogus becuase there are terrible comments from both sides. We should be policing ourselves because that is the only consistent way to address these comments.
There are always going to be people with no tact on either side so the best way to show that the your side is more civilized is to police people on your own side. Let's say, for example, a lefty wishing death on Cheney is followed by other lefties responding in protest and a righty wishing death on Obama is not followed by other righties responding in protest. Anyone reading could conclude that left is more civilized for policing their own.
Charles
Nice to see you're not hiding anymore.
Wishing death upon a Mass murderer (CHENEY) and war criminal, is a different thing from hoping for the death of a sitting President.
Just because Cheney has been able to cover his tracks through the use of classification doesn't make him an innocent to anyone with an open mind.
Offensive to some? YES. But what has been deleted should be reinstated, just like the truth about the Cheney/Bush administration.
Not hiding, just working. Actually, I don't know how some of these commenters get anything done at their jobs with the amount of comments they are posting.
Like I said, "I don't think [your] comment should have been deleted". I just think it was tactless and should be called out as such.
Oh, you're still hiding. You indicated you knew plenty about 9/11, offered to discuss it, and then ran away.
"Let's hope the Cheney family flys out to Alaska for the funeral." isn't even a tactless statement, one has to read between the lines to perceive an inferrence in it.
It isn't enough to say that a comment shouldn't be deleted, one should say that it must be reinstated for all to see now that we have drawn attention to the censorship which never should have happened.
If you're too busy to post comments ,selectively, you should also be too busy to read along.
Wow, Paul. Nice to see your rationalization of wishing death on a former VP, who has never been convicted of war crimes, I might add. Your comments PROVE that the left can't police their own. So go ahead and blame it on the vile right and we'll still have the same problem tomorrow as we do today.
Be open to an unhindered investigation, and we'll stop wishing for the untimely death of Cheney's whole family. If you're going to protect a murderer from investigation and prosecution just because he hasn't been convicted yet, you make yourself an accessory after the fact.
If you are right, what do you have to lose from an unhindered investigation?
I asked for two or three points so we could begin a discussion and you gave me the Gish Gallop. I'm over it now.
I agree with you that your comment should be reinstated.
Thank you for lying to me, on the original subject of 9/11, it proves my point every time.
And thank you for supporting free speech and seeing the difference between deletion and reinstatement.
Back to work now.
In your land of make-believe there are only three kinds of people; the evil 9/11 conspirators, the clueless masses that have been duped, and the enlightened few that have glimpsed behind the curtain. It gives you a feeling of importance and meaning to put yourself in the later category and you will ignore the truth in order to preserve your sense of elitism. Most of us don’t live very glamorous lives. Get over it.
Now please go ahead and prove my point by either accusing me of either not know what I’m talking about or being “in on it”.
You've already proved that you don't know a tenth of what you should about 9/11.
We can set up a time for you to demonstrate it to our audience when you're not so busy.
Of course you did dodge our first appointment, not much reason for me to expect you not to bail on the next one.
You left out the category of people who know enough to suspect that 9/11 was an inside job, but are okay with that because they feel our government should have the latitude to lie to us and kill some of us if it benefits the elite geopolitically.
And you asked for three points, I gave you three points. You asked for more points, I gave you more points.
You would never answer my questions, and when it came time for you to hold up your end of the bargain, you said you were too busy on the weekend to bother. Gish Gallop, please.
Paul:
Why don't you go somewhere and sit you STUUUUUPID azz down and STFU!
You have just took the throne of "The most ignorant MF'er on First Read" and there are quite a few on here.
I am certain that whomever reads this thread will come to a different conclusion than you, as to who is ignorant here.
Good day to you, sir.
I am certain that whomever reads this thread will come to a different conclusion than you, as to who is ignorant here.
Good day to you, sir.
Yeah, I'm kind of with you on that, Paul
Thanks dear. Give Summer Surprise a carrot for me.
Go take a peek under the Rostenkoski thread... and witness the hatred & vitriol!
I called out DOMENICO (yet again) and now maybe you'll understand why I am this close to quitting this BS blog!
ENOUGH with the selective censorship ALREADY!
I will, Paul, thanks!